Traditionally, commercial data analysis services have been offered as a monolithic system in which the data analysis algorithms and database are part of a single system offering. FIG. 1 depicts an example of such a prior art system. As depicted, a customer 900 interacts with the data analysis provider 930, gets results, and is charged some price for the results. The data analysis provider has both the data analysis algorithm 910 and the database to be analyzed 920. Potentially, the system can be implemented as a client-server system where the customer and data analysis provider interact over some network (possibly the Internet or Intranets). It is also possible that the data analysis algorithms and the database were developed by different organizations. However, the data analysis provider that a customer interacts with is a monolithic system. An example is the Lexis-Nexis service which is provided by a division of Reed-Elsevier, Inc.
More recently, another model of data analysis service has become prevalent on the Internet. Here, the data analysis algorithms are supplied by search engines such as Yahoo! (from Yahoo! Corporation) and Alta Vista (from Digital Equipment Corporation). The database is all web pages on the Internet--some of them with relational data but they usually contain unstructured data with text, numbers, figures, images/video, and audio. An index database is constructed either manually or automatically on a periodic basis. Customer requests for information trigger a search of the index database and the customer is pointed to relevant Internet sources. The index and search mechanism taken together constitute a data analysis algorithm. The data analysis algorithm in these search engines are packaged together with the search engine and are not subject to replacement dynamically at the request of the customer. In addition, the search engines and the database are free. Revenue, if any, is generated by advertising related to various web pages generated by the search engines.
Thus, there is a need for a system available on the Internet allowing users to dynamically combine service providers, e.g., of data analysis algorithms with independent content suppliers, e.g., of databases. There is also a need for the system to maintain proper security for the proprietary algorithms and databases, and a pricing mechanism whereby the customer is charged for access to the algorithms and databases. The present invention addresses such a need.
An electronic commerce model, Secure Electronic Transaction (SET), has been proposed by major credit and computer vendors including IBM, Microsoft, VISA and Mastercard. This model will be supported by many entities engaging in commerce on the Internet. For example, IBM's merchant server "Net.Commerce" and cyber shopping district "World Avenue" have announced plans to use SET. See URL http://www.visa.com for more details on SET.